Multishipping Mayhem - Holiday Edition
by Mainstream-Deviant
Summary: A series of little holiday/winter themed drabbles – 24 days, 24 ships. Each drabble can be read on it's own, so go ahead and pick your favourite pairings to read. Vive la multishipping!
1. Candleshipping - Decorations

_A/N: Welcome to the Mayhem! Each new drabble will be listed with the ship and theme, which were assigned by random number generator. Skip around to whatever you want to read!_

 _If you want to suggest a drabble for future collections, drop by my Tumblr, under the same username (I survived Tumblrgeddon for now)._

~ o ~ o ~ o ~

 **Day 1: Candleshipping (Yami Bakura/Ryou/Seto) - "Decorations"**

~ o ~ o ~ o ~

There was a brief, pounding knock before a flurry of white hair poured through the office door. Seto barely flinched as his finger flew over the keys. "What do you two want this time."

Ryou's chipper voice answered him. "We're here to decorate. Your office needs some holiday cheer. You're scaring your employees."

"Good."

"Not good. It is, tragically, past Halloween season when people like to be scared. Now hush, we're here to help your image."

Seto just let out a little grunt. He'd long since learned to pick his battles with these two, and whether his office had sprigs of holly or whatever other nonsense on the walls was not worth his time to argue over. He stayed focused on the computer screen as he heard the rustling of bags being placed on the floor, and left them to it. Or rather, he tried to. It lasted for all of about five seconds.

"Hey asshole, pay attention." A hand suddenly reached forward and snapped his laptop shut. Seto barely managed to snatch his fingers away in time, and glared up at the culprit.

Bakura just smirked back. "Don't give me that shit, your fingers are fast enough to dodge a laptop."

"They wouldn't have to be if you'd let me get my work done."

Bakura scoffed. "Where's the fun in that?"

Seto opened his mouth to snap back, but was interrupted by Ryou draping himself over his shoulders.

"Come on, Seto, just a little break? Then we'll tackle that coding error on level six that just refuses to die." He shifted around to flop himself right in Seto's lap and hit him with the widest puppy eyes he could manage. "Please?"

Seto looked back and forth between the wide-eyed boy on his lap and the smirking one standing next to the desk. He sighed and ran the hand that hadn't automatically curled around Ryou's hip over his face. "Fine. Ten minutes. Tops."

Ryou beamed. "Excellent!" He learned over to peck a kiss to Seto's cheek before hopping up. "Let's start with the garland!" He pecked a quick kiss to Bakura's cheek too, and hurried his way back to the bags he'd dumped on the way in.

Seto let out a sigh, but smiled a little as he stood up and hauled Bakura over to get their decorating instructions. At least he'd have extra help on that code. Good help was hard to find, after all.

~ o ~ o ~ o ~

 _A/N: I adore any and all kinds of feedback, from one emoji to a whole essay. I enjoy talking to readers and will reply to all signed reviews. :D Unfortunately, I can't reply to guest reviews on FFnet, but know that I love them just the same. (A03 and Tumblr allow responses to anon reviews, though!)_


	2. Chaseshipping - Playing in the snow

**Day 2: Chaseshipping (Otogi/Honda) - "Playing in the Snow"**

(Is this ship even a thing anymore? lol)

~ o ~ o ~ o ~

Otogi rolled his eyes. "And _what_ , exactly, are you stopping for _now?_ " It was cold and the ground was covered in fresh snow. He just wanted to get inside to a half decent cup of coffee, but trying to get Honda to hurry up was starting to feel like herding cats. Now he'd stopped entirely to fish around in the snow.

"Making a snowball." Snow crunched in his hands as he spoke.

"Why are you wasting time makin- _don't you dare!_ "

It was too late. The snowball had found its mark square in the middle of his chest. He could feel the cold seeping through the material already. He shot Honda a glare. "Why. I liked this shirt."

"Gotta keep up with my nephew, you know. It's good practice."

Otogi smirked. "Oh, I'll give you practice."

And with that, it was game on. Otogi even managed to forget the cold for a while as they chased each other around the park, trying to hit each other in as much snow as possible. Well, he forgot the cold until the idiot he was walking home with decided to full-body tackle him into a snowbank.

"Hey! That's _cold_!" He let out a frustrated huff and squirmed to be let go, but couldn't dislodge his attacker. He crossed his arms with a pout. "You _so_ owe me the good coffee after this."

"Yeah, yeah. If you say so."

When Honda leaned in with a grin, all he got a face full of snow. He deserved it.


	3. Puzzleshipping - Snowed in

**Day 3: Puzzleshipping (Yami/Yugi) - "Snowed in"**

(Are there people who don't know what this ship is? lol)

~ o ~ o ~ o ~

Yami peered out the window. It was white outside. Very white. After a few quiet moments, he drifted away from the window and over to where Yugi was still sleeping. He sat on the chair by the bed, and frowned at the snow continuing to drift downwards.

It wasn't long before Yugi stirred, grumbling and rubbing at his eyes as he woke. Yami turned from the window and turned his attention to his waking partner.

" _Aibou_."

Yugi hummed and looked up at the spirit. "Hmm? Yami, what's wrong?"

" _It seems you were right about snow coming overnight._ "

"Oh! Really? They said there might be a lot of it."

" _Indeed._ " Yami gestured to the window. " _Perhaps more than you were expecting._ "

Yugi gave him a curious look and hauled himself out of bed to pad to the window. When he looked outside, his eyes went wide. "Oh."

" _It appears you may have trouble getting to school._ "

"Never mind school, I doubt we can get anywhere!" Yugi threw on the first outfit he could find before looping the puzzle around his neck. "Snow day!"

" _Yes, I can see that._ "

Yugi laughed. "No, I mean it's gonna _be_ a snow day. We're snowed in!"

Yami just gave his partner a nonplussed look. " _And that's something you're excited about?_ "

"Well, yeah! We get to just hang out and play games all day."

Yami smiled back at Yugi's infectious happiness. " _That does sound like fun_."

"Yeah. Let's go see if Grandpa will let us borrow some of the new games from the shop. We can teach the gang once school's open again!"

Yami smiled and moved to follow Yugi downstairs. " _That sounds wonderful, Aibou_."


	4. Blindshipping - Paper snowflakes

**Day 4: Blindshipping (Yugi/Atem) - "Paper Snowflakes"**

(Two snowy puzzle-centred drabbles in a row. Weird.)

~ o ~ o ~ o ~

"Aibou, what are you doing?"

Yugi was sitting at a low table in the living room, surrounded by… Little mounds of shredded paper? Atem was fully aware that there were many aspects of the modern world that eluded him, but he'd never seen Yugi get involved in something that looked like… whatever this was. He looked happy, though, so it must serve some purpose.

"I'm making snowflakes!"

Atem gave Yugi a nonplussed look. "Out of paper? Indoors?"

"Yep!" Yugi beamed up at his partner and patted the ground next to him. "Come see. It's fun!"

Atem smiled indulgently and settled to the ground, eyeing the mound of paper curiously. "I'm still not certain why you would want to make snowflakes out of paper indoors, when there is plenty of snow outdoors already."

"Just for fun, really. We made these when we were kids as decoration. See? It's easy." Yugi held up a piece of paper that he'd folded in on itself several times, and cut a series of notches into the sides.

Atem eyed it critically. "That's a very, um… _solid_ snowflake, Yugi."

Yugi giggled. "Hush. Just look." Yugi carefully unfolded the paper, and revealed what was suddenly a delightfully complex pattern of holes.

Atem nodded with a smile. "I see. That's quite clever." He looked around at the other snowflakes littering the table curiously, lifting a couple of them to examine the patterns. "Why have you suddenly decided to take up childhood crafts again?"

"I dunno, I guess I just felt like making it look nice for your first winter here, and this came to mind." Yugi turned to Atem and practically radiated happiness.

Atem smiled gratefully and leaned over to plant a kiss to Yugi's temple, then reached for his own piece of paper. "Thank you, Aibou."


	5. Thiefshipping - Eggnog

**Day 5: Thiefshipping (Marik/Bakura) - "Eggnog"**

(Again, is there anyone who doesn't actually know this ship? lol)

~ o ~ o ~ o ~

Marik strolled into the living room to find Bakura stirring a large bowl of… something. "What's that?"

"Dunno, some crap my host made. Supposed to be 'festive', apparently."

Marik peered over Bakura's shoulder into the bowl. "It looks like dirty milk."

Bakura shrugged. "It's called eggnog. Apparently it's good." Bakura scooped up a ladleful and let it dribble back into the bowl. "I agree with you, though."

"Well, I doubt he'd be trying to poison you, he needs the body too." Marik gave the bowl one more sceptical look before shrugging. "Let's try it. He usually has good taste." Marik grabbed one of the glasses next to the punch bowl and held it out expectantly.

"Yeah, I guess." Bakura dunked the ladle back in to serve them each a glass. He gave it his own sceptical look before raising it in a mocking toast. "To festive shit."

Marik laughed. "To festive shit." He clicked the glasses together and took a sip. His eyes went wide. "Wow, that's actually really good."

Bakura grunted and took a swig himself. He blinked. "Huh. Yeah, it is." He took a deeper drink. "Creamy."

Marik smirked. "You'd know all about that, wouldn't you?"

"Ha-fucking-ha."

Marik took another sip and licked his lips before giving the bowl a sideways look. "Did Ryou happen to mention anything about booze in this?"

"I didn't really listen." Bakura knocked back the rest of his drink. "Who cares, it's good. I'm having more."

They were on their third glass when Marik nodded with conviction. "There is _definitely_ booze in this." He smacked his lips. "'S good."

"Yup." Bakura cheerfully sloshed more in their glasses and leaned heavily on Marik's shoulder. "Very festive an' shit." He nuzzled his face into Marik's neck as he spoke.

Marik giggled – er, chuckled. "Are you trying to cuddle me?"

Bakura rubbed a cheek along Marik's shoulder and flung a leg across his lap. "No."

Marik burst out laughing again. "You _are!_ "

"Nope." Bakura popped the 'p' and reached forward to slosh them some more eggnog before settling back against Marik.

Marik happily accepted the drink with one hand, and wound his other arm around Bakura's middle to shift him closer. "This stuff is really weirdly strong."

"Yeah, whatever. Ryou's good at sweet shit."

They worked their way through more of the eggnog than they really should have over the course of the evening. At some point, Bakura ended up straddling Marik's lap, whispering sappy nonsense into his ear and insisting that he had to steal all the kisses for himself because he was the masterest of master thieves and he had a _reputation to uphold, you know_. It wasn't long after that their limbs ended up too tangled together to reach the last of the eggnog, and the warmth and comfort of the couch lulled them to sleep.

The next morning's headaches would be unpleasant, to say the least. But for now, the moment was perfect.


	6. Angstshipping - Mistletoe

**Day 6: Angstshipping (Ryou/Marik) - "Mistletoe"**

~ o ~ o ~ o ~

"You're really excited about this whole decorating thing, aren't you?"

Marik stared at the piles of boxes scattered around the room. He hadn't expected his boyfriend to be so excited about Christmas decorations. It was their first year doing the holidays together, so he supposed he had no reason to know, but Ryou had gone _all out_ for Halloween. Wasn't it usually one or the other with these things? He peered into a box full of plastic tree parts. It looked like their home was about to get nearly as festive as it had been spooky a few weeks ago.

Ryou looked up from trying to disentangle a clump of coloured lights. "Well, it's not Halloween, but it's still fun to decorate. Plus, this will go along with all the holiday baking." Ryou's eyes sparkled in anticipation of a frosting overdose. "I'm gonna be fat by New Year's. You might need to find a new boyfriend."

Marik laughed. "Just more of you to love, that's all." Marik plopped to the ground and pulled Ryou over to plant a kiss on his temple. "Ok, I'll help. What's next in your master plan?"

Ryou wasted no time giving him marching orders. Marik never would have guessed that someone he once treated like a placid little doll in Battle City would actually be so _bossy._ But then, he wouldn't have ever ended up wrestling with a misbehaving garland in their shared apartment if Ryou hadn't surprised him with his snarky side after the ceremonial duel.

They spent a good couple of hours working through Ryou's boxes of decorations. Marik turned when Ryou loudly cleared his throat. He was standing in the doorway looking back and forth between Marik and a small ball of greenery he'd apparently just finished hanging over the door.

Ryou gave Marik an expectant look. "Well?"

"Well what?" Marik shrugged. "I really don't know what you're expecting out of me. Compliments on your decorating skills? Does it have another part I'm supposed to get?"

Ryou blinked. "It's mistletoe."

"That's nice?" Marik chucked a little helplessly.

Ryou smiled and rocked back and forth on his heels. "You hang mistletoe in doorways so that people have to walk under it. When two people get 'caught' under the mistletoe, they're supposed to kiss." Ryou paused briefly, but Marik was busy looking curiously at the decoration. Ryou sighed and rolled his eyes. "So get your ass over here. Anytime."

Marik laughed and hurried over. "Right." He wound his arms around Ryou's waist and pecked a kiss to his lips – or rather, he tried for a quick peck, but melted into Ryou when he found arms wrapped around his neck. He hummed happily into the kiss as they pulled apart and laid his forehead against Ryou's.

Ryou looked up at Marik through his lashes. "I'm going to hang it in every doorway we have as an excuse to get more kisses, you realize. I want all of them. They're mine." He reached forward and pecked another kiss to Marik's lips. "I guess the thief rubbed off on me a bit. I'm greedy."

Marik laughed and rubbed their noses together. "Good. So am I." Ryou's answering laugh was smothered in another mistletoe kiss.


	7. Blueshipping - Bah, Humbug

**Day 7: Blueshipping (Seto/Kisara) - "Bah, humbug"**

(It kinda worked out that Kaiba got "humbug", didn't it?)

~ o ~ o ~ o ~

Seto hunched over his laptop and rubbed agitated fingers against his temple. He was just about ready to offer a large bonus to whichever employee could figure out who or what had so thoroughly riddled this code with errors, so he could have the satisfaction of firing them personally. He'd been working on trying to unravel the disaster for hours.

There was a gentle knock on the door. He didn't even look up as soft steps padded across the room.

"Seto, you really should take a break."

"In a minute."

Seto felt slender arms wind over his shoulders, and soon there was a wall of silky white hair blocking his view of the screen as Kisara leaned over him with a quiet smile. "No, now." She placed a gentle kiss to the crown of his head. "We can decorate the house for the holidays, or have some of that holiday tea Mokuba bought, or something."

Seto just grunted with a frown. "I don't have time for any of that holiday nonsense. This project is behind, and-"

"Yes, you do. It will be there waiting when you get back." Kisara gently but insistently wrapped a hand around his wrist and tugged him forward. "You'll thank me later. Come on."

Seto sighed deeply. He really didn't have the time for this, but there was little use resisting. And tea and company did sound nice, he supposed. The corners of his mouth turned up in the barest of tired smiles. "I always do."


	8. Casteshipping - It's cold!

**Day 8: Casteshipping (Atem/Thief King) - "It's cold!"**

(We're going to skip the Very Significant Character Development needed for these two to even be friends. lol)

~ o ~ o ~ o ~

"Why the crap do we live here?"

"Because it's close to our partners."

"Why the crap do _they_ live here, then?"

Atem just chuckled helplessly. "Because it's nice in the summertime?"

Bakura grumbled and shoved his hands deeper into his pockets. "I miss Egypt. We didn't have to freeze our balls off just to get to the market… store… whatever." Bakura sneezed, and did his best to wipe his nose on his shoulder to avoid taking his hands out of their little pockets of relative warmth. "It's cold as ass out here."

Atem side-eyed Bakura as he used his hoodie as a tissue. "Charming." Then he shrugged. "It's cold enough, but you're the one who decided a sweater was enough to wear."

" _You_ might be fine looking like a marshmallow, but I want to be able to actually move my arms properly."

Atem barely resisted rolling his eyes. "You have the oddest sense of priorities."

"Says the man who insisted on going to the store for a fucking _booster pack_ in the middle of the fucking _ice age_."

Atem chuckled and shook his head. "It's hardly an ice age. If you'd worn proper clothes this wouldn't be a problem." Despite his chiding, he reached up and unwound the scarf from his neck. "Here. Maybe this will help at least a little." He looped the scarf loosely around Bakura's neck, who was quick to tuck it firmly to his skin. He closed his eyes in apparent bliss, before remembering himself and shooting a half-hearted glare at Atem.

"Still should have killed you when I had the chance."

"You'll learn to live with the regret."

"Oh, fuck off."


	9. Gemshipping - Slipping on ice

**Day 9: Gemshipping (Thief King/Ryou) - "Slipping on ice"**

~ o ~ o ~ o ~

"Oh, what the _fuck._ "

There was a bright burst of giggles beside him. "Troubles?"

"You shut your damn pretty mouth."

On the one hand, Ryou did slap his hands over his mouth to muffle the next set of giggles, when Bakura fell flat on his ass again. On the other hand, that's _not_ what he meant.

Bakura tried again to scramble to his feet, but the sheet of smooth ice that had taken over the sidewalk was not cooperating. He got halfway up when his legs went out from under him again.

"Oh my goodness, it's like watching Bambi. I've got to take a video of this, hang on." Ryou fished around in his pocket for his phone.

"You take a video and I'll withhold sex for a week, you brat."

"No, you really won't. Well, unless your ass is too sore after this I suppose. And it'd be worth it, anyways." Ryou clicked his phone on and pointed it at the trapped thief. He put on his best impersonation of a nature commentary and hit record. "And here, we have the Ancient Egyptian Thief, ever _so_ very far away from his natural habitat…"

"I'm gonna kill you when I get to you."

"…legend has it that this creature was once light on its feet, but this particular specimen is currently having… issues." Ryou paused but Bakura just sat and glared at him. "Oh come on, try to get up again! For science!"

"I will murder you."

"Only if you can catch me."

With a growl, Bakura tried to clamber to his feet, and promptly flopped to the ground again with rather impressively flailing arms.

Ryou burst out laughing again. "Ooh, that was _perfect._ The beauty! The majesty! The grace under pressure!"

Bakura snarled at the camera. "Ok, we're done with this game." Rather than try to get up again, he just lunged forward to try to take Ryou out at the knees. If he was stuck on the ground forever, his boyfriend could damn well show some solidarity and join him. He managed to grab him around the thighs, and Ryou fell to the hard ground with a _thump_ as his phone went flying _._

"Ow! What the hell Bakura, that hurt!"

"Don't mock the afflicted then."

Ryou winced and rubbed his hip. "No seriously, that really hurt."

Bakura shimmied forward and hauled Ryou toward him to plant a kiss on the crown of his head. "Sorry." He gave Ryou's hip a comforting rub, then a wide grin spread across his face. "I guess I'll just have to kiss it better, later."

"You bloody well better, you jerk." Despite his angry words, Ryou settled comfortably against the thief. It wasn't the most comfortable spot for a cuddle, but who was he to turn down the opportunity?

After a few moments, he craned his head back to look at the thief. "Hey, I just had an idea for our next date."

Bakura hummed and rested his head on Ryou's shoulder. "Oh?"

Ryou turned his head to peck a kiss to Bakura's scar, and smiled as sweetly as he could. "How'd you like to go ice skating, oh graceful one? That should be good for a laugh."

There was a beat of silence before the mad scrambling started, as Ryou tried to escape Bakura's wrath. With all the ice they didn't get far, but it's the (slightly homicidal, in some cases) thought that counts.

~ o ~ o ~ o ~

 _A/N: Who else wishes they could get a copy of that video? ;p_


	10. Flareshipping - Ice skating

**Day 10: Flareshipping (Yugi/Yami/Seto) - "Ice skating"**

~ o ~ o ~ o ~

"C'mon, Yami, it'll be fine. I'll help!"

Yami stared down at the thin blades attached to his feet with more than a little concern. "This does not feel like the safest winter activity we could have tried, Aibou."

"It's plenty safe. We've faced worse. Come _on._ Besides, you wanted to get your feet under you before Seto arrives."

Yami took a deep breath and grabbed Yugi's hands. He wobbled disconcertingly as he stood, and he was still on solid ground. This had all the makings of a disaster waiting to happen. Still, he hobbled after his partner towards the rink.

Yugi stepped easily on to the ice and turned to hold out his hands again. "It'll be a bit slippery, so step flat on your skate."

It was a bit precarious at first but soon the pharaoh was upright on the ice, with both hands firmly gripping sideboards for balance as his knees wobbled under him.

"Ok, so to move just kind of push your foot out sideways a bit, it'll push you forward. Don't lift your foot though. Here, take my hands so you can move better." Yugi held out his hands expectantly, and Yami carefully transferred his grip. He took a deep breath and tried pushing one skate forward. He wobbled horribly and was pretty sure poor Yugi was going to end up with broken fingers with how hard he gripped them, but he managed to stay upright.

"That wasn't so bad."

Yugi beamed. "See? You'll get the hang of it. Try again!"

The next few minutes were filled with a series of false starts and the occasional tumble to the ice. Yami quickly gained some confidence, and looked up at Yugi with a determined grin. "Ok, Aibou. This time I'm sure I'll manage it."

"Do your best!"

Yami pushed a foot forward with more bravado than he really felt, and paid the price. He lost balance entirely, and windmilled his arms in a desperate attempt to stay upright. He'd braced himself for a hard thump to the ice, when there was suddenly a solid grip under his armpits and his head thumped against a warm chest instead. He glanced upwards into familiar blue eyes.

Seto smirked down at him. "Hello."

Yami tried to regain his composure, which is quite hard to do when you're being held up like a child. "Hello."

"I see the skating is going well." Seto's challenging smirk broadened, but he took advantage of Yami's poor balance to peck a quick kiss to the top of his head before hauling him back to his feet.

"He's doing pretty well for his first time, actually!"

Yami had taken a firm hold of Yugi again, so Seto glided effortlessly around the pair to face them better.

Yami watched him gracefully sneak a peck to Yugi's temple on the way by with a groan. "How are you so good at this? You split your entire life between a desk and a duelling arena."

"I make a point of knowing about most things. Besides, Mokuba enjoyed skating when he was younger."

Yami held back a groan and tried to make headway again. He stayed upright, but only just.

Seto chucked again and positioned himself at Yami's side so he could take one of his hands for himself. Yugi quickly braced his other side. "It looks like I've finally found something I can beat you at."

"Not for long." Yami grinned up at him with a challenge in his eyes. "Right Aibou?" He glanced to Yugi on hi other side.

"Right! Let's go!" He made sure that Yami had a good grip on both of them before they set off to wobble slowly down the ice.

~ o ~ o ~ o ~

 _A/N: Good thing this version of Yami has a boyfriend for each arm, huh? ;)_


	11. Euroshipping - Snowfall

**Day 11: Euroshipping (Ryou/Seto) - "Snowfall"**

~ o ~ o ~ o ~

"Isn't it just beautiful?"

Seto hummed beside him. "I suppose."

"You suppose?" Ryou laughed. "It looks like a snow globe out here, it's gorgeous. Lighten up a little, will you? It's Christmas." Ryou snuck his hand into the crook of Seto's arm. "It's so white everywhere I can hardly tell where to walk."

Ryou heard a low chuckle beside him. "Yes, you'll blend right in and vanish into the landscape soon, never to be seen again. Well, I suppose it was nice while it lasted. Goodbye." Seto automatically adjusted his pace to match Ryou's as he spoke. "Actually, it's a shame it's not snowy for Halloween. You'd be able to sneak up on anyone that way." He paused so consider that. "On second thought, good thing it's not. You'd be unstoppable, and that's a terrifying thought."

"You mean delightful. It's a delightful thought."

Seto scoffed. "You have the strangest priorities."

There was silence, and Seto glanced down to see that he was on the receiving end of a highly judgemental look. They stared at each other for a beat before Seto broke the silence. "No comment."

Ryou just laughed and rested his head on Seto's arm for a moment. Then, he tilted his head right back and stuck out his tongue.

Seto looked down when he stumbled a bit and raised an eyebrow. "What exactly are you doing?"

"ca-hing ho-hakes onai tung."

"….what?"

Ryou closed his mouth and grinned. "Catching snowflakes on my tongue. For luck!" He started to stick his tongue out again, then paused. "You should, too. Double our chances." Ryou didn't wait for a response before tilting his head back again.

Seto rolled his eyes a little, but poked his tongue out of his mouth a little after a few steps. He drew the line at tilting his head back, though. Someone had to actually watch where they were going and make sure they didn't trip and fall flat on their faces.

Ryou let out a shout beside him. "Got one!" He turned to beam at Seto and let out a joyous laugh when he caught him with his tongue out, too. He reached up with a smile to steal a quick kiss, before settling back into Seto's side.

The pair soon fell into easy conversation about the latest gaming projects at Kaibacorp as they wandered down what was probably the path, and enjoyed the peace and quiet of the gently falling snow.


	12. Deathshipping - Bundled Up

**Day 12: Deathshipping (Yami Marik/Ryou) - "Bundled up"**

(Yami Marik's name-of-the-day: Kek!)

~ o ~ o ~ o ~

Ryou sat thoroughly bundled up in a nice thick sweater and the warmest blanket he could find. He was absolutely freezing, and no amount of warm clothing seemed to be helping. He fumbled around in the blankets, looking for the source of the phantom draft freezing his toes solid despite the nice fluffy socks he had on.

Kek strolled in to the room and spotted the small mountain of fluff that had consumed his boyfriend. He walked over and peered into the pile. "Cold?"

Ryou poked his head out from his cocoon. "What was your first clu….how on earth are you only wearing a t-shirt right now?"

Kek looked down at his chest and shrugged. "It's not that cold."

"It's freezing!" Ryou huffed, then blinked up at Kek with his best pleading expression. "Gimme your body heat."

Kek smirked and made a show of thinking it over while Ryou squirmed impatiently, before crossing his arms with a wide grin. "No."

"But I'm _cold._ "

"And I'm evil. What're you going to do about it?"

Ryou scowled at his dirty, rotten, mean, no-good boyfriend, who nonetheless looked very warm and inviting. He shifted around under the blankets to make sure his limbs were free.

Kek leaned over him. "You look like a squirming marshmallow."

Ryou didn't dignify that with a response. Instead, he launched himself from his blanket fort and tackled Kek around the middle. The unexpected attack sent them both splaying out on the floor, where Ryou promptly wrapped both arms and legs around his prey, and buried his face in Kek's chest. " _My_ body heat. Gimme."

Kek burst into loud cackles. "Only you can make a sneak attack look adorable. It's incredible."

Ryou snuck a hand up to awkwardly squish against Kek's mouth. "Shhhh, body pillows don't talk." He unhooked one leg and squirmed around to pull the corner of the blanket over. He made short work of tucking it around them both and burrowing right back into Kek's glorious warmth. He let out a contented sigh.

Kek whined. "I'm going to overheat at this rate."

"And I'm cold. What're you gonna do about it?"

Kek just grinned and ducked his head under the blanket. Ryou let out a loud yelp, but didn't yield his newfound pocket of warmth.

~ o ~ o ~ o ~

 _A/N: Ryou gets what he wants. Or else. ;)_


	13. Citronshipping - Hot chocolate

**Day 13: Citronshipping (Thief King/Marik) - "Hot chocolate"**

(An unofficial continuation of the Eggnog prompt earlier, but you don't actually have to read it first)

~ o ~ o ~ o ~

Bakura followed his nose into the kitchen, where he found Marik busily stirring a put on the stove. He peered over Marik's shoulder. "What're you making this time?"

Marik turned his head to brush a kiss along Bakura's scar, and Bakura stepped back a bit, satisfied. "A nice holiday drink."

"More of that eggnog?" Bakura frowned and peered more closely at the pot.

"No, that's Ryou's thing. This is just hot cocoa."

Bakura gave a sharp nod. "Good. Eggnog leads to headaches, especially now that I can't steal Ryou's alcohol tolerance anymore."

Marik smirked. "But you're so wonderfully cuddly after a few cups. Maybe we should sneak some peppermint schnapps in your cocoa for good measure."

" _Gods_ no. I'll cuddle you sober if you're all that desperate for it." Bakura wound his arms loosely around Marik's waist to prove his point.

Marik laughed. "Is that so? All I ever had to do to turn you into a total sap was threaten you with schnapps? Damn, I wish I'd known that in Battle City."

"The secret dies with you."

"Yeah, yeah, I'll protect what's left of your reputation." Marik gently nudged at Bakura's arms. "Let me go for now, though, I need to get us some mugs."

Bakura dropped his hold and waited patiently for his drink. He took a deep breath of the steam as soon as he had it in hand. "This smells good. Really good. You might be ready to challenge Ryou."

Marik poured himself a mug and shook his head. "I wouldn't dare." Drink in hand, he settled next to Bakura on the counter. He held the mug up. "To conning cuddles out of gullible idiots."

Bakura smirked and clinked their mugs together. "To assholes who will keep their mouths shut if they know what's good for them."

Marik laughed, and took a sip. Hmm, that actually was pretty good – not that Ryou would ever find out he thought that.


	14. Rustshipping - Gingerbread house

**Day 14: Rustshipping (Thief King/Yami Marik/Ryou) - "Gingerbread house"**

(Yami Marik's name-of-the-day: Amir!)

~ o ~ o ~ o ~

Bakura and Amir tromped into the kitchen, bickering about what their next moves should be when they sat down for Monster World that night. Their conversation stopped in its tracks when they realized they'd walked into some kind of confectionary war zone.

"Ryou, what the hell happed in here?"

Ryou, to his credit, looked perfectly calm in the midst of the chaos. "Oh, perfect timing! Everything's just ready!"

Amir stared curiously at the little dishes full of various brightly-coloured candies. "Ready for what?"

"Making the gingerbread house! I've cooked the pieces from scratch. The store-bought stuff is horribly bland, so it had to be done."

Bakura dipped a finger in a bowlful of frosting, and got his hand smacked. He glared at Ryou. "You left it unguarded. It's fair game."

"Not in my kitchen it isn't."

Bakura huffed. So, it was going to be that kind of day, was it? They'd long since learned not to bother trying to stop Ryou if he was on a baking rampage. The only way out was through. He caught Amir's eyes and squared his shoulders. "So why are we building a house out of candy?"

Ryou perked up. "For fun. And it's tasty. And neither of you have done it before." Ryou's grin widened a bit. "And because I'm pretty sure Amir will have fun ripping it apart at the seams to eat it later."

Amir gave Ryou a wild grin. "Sounds like my kind of baking." He shuffled up next to Ryou. "What do we need to do?"

Ryou beamed and set them to work. Before they were through, icing had ended up various in places it shouldn't have (showers were now a must), a game of stealing candies when Ryou's back was turned developed and then immediately fizzled when Ryou turned his best pout on the pair of them, and more than one argument broke out about the optimal candies for landscaping, which usually ended with a random assortment being thrown together in an effort to compromise.

In the end, the final product was a little lopsided and would make any home designer want to gouge their eyes out at the horribly clashing colours and styles, but it was theirs. Ryou was delighted.


	15. Rivalshipping - Sleigh Ride

**Day 15: Rivalshipping (Yugi/Seto) - "Sleigh ride"**

~ o ~ o ~ o ~

Yugi looked up from the box of expansion packs he was sorting when there was a sudden commotion at the door. He smiled when he saw that it was Seto dusting the snow from his trench coat.

"Yugi."

"Hi, Seto!"

"I'd like to steal away some of your time."

Yugi shoved the expansion packs he was holding back in the box. They could wait. "That can be arranged. What's up?"

"Follow me."

Yugi followed Seto out the door without question and gaped when he saw a blue and silver horse-drawn sleigh waiting outside, complete with uniformed driver.

Seto smirked down at him. "You said you wanted to go on a sleigh ride."

Yugi snapped his jaw shut. "Well yeah, but I meant we should go on one of the rides they're putting on in the park. This is a little excessive, isn't it?"

Seto shrugged. "This is better."

Yugi was getting over his shock, and the excitement was setting in. "Yeah, ok, this is really cool. C'mon!" He grabbed Seto's hand and hauled him toward the sleigh. Seto followed with a self-satisfied grin.

"Oh, this is so great!" Yugi scampered up to pat the horse, which nudged his chest with its nose and snorted. Yugi was practically bouncing in excitement as he rubbed at the horse's neck, and started to babble excitedly about the sleigh. He stopped and blinked in confusion when he felt a hand poking around in his own hair.

"What are you doing, Seto? Do I have something caught in my hair again?" He tilted his head back to look up at Seto, who wore a suspiciously serious expression.

"No, I was just examining you to see if by boyfriend had been swapped out with an excitable ten-year-old. That would have been awkward. But you appear unharmed. Well done."

Yugi rolled his eyes and stuck out his tongue, which probably didn't do much to help confirm his mature adulthood. He didn't much care, though.

Seto just smiled, and placed a hand on the small of his back to gently guide him to the sleigh. "Come on. I didn't buy this thing just to look at it, you know."

"Right!"

Yugi settled comfortably on the bench seating, and tucked himself firmly to Seto's side once he sat down and gave the driver the go-ahead. He idly trailed fingers along the detailing on the railing, and snorted when he noticed the design.

"Blue-eyes' in between the holly? Really?"

Seto laid his arm across Yugi's shoulder. "You knew what you were getting into."

Yugi had to laugh a little at that. "Yes, I did." He tipped his head back and was rewarded with a warm kiss to ward off the chilly winter air as the sleigh set off.


	16. Gravityshipping - Christmas Lights

**Day 16: Gravityshipping (Thief King/Ryou/Marik) - "Christmas Lights"**

(This was originally posted on Marik's birthday, but FFnet is a bit behind. Marik deserves some good things on his birthday, so there.)

~ o ~ o ~ o ~

"Watch it! You're going to fall!"

"I was robbing tombs before your family tree was even planted, I'll be fine."

"Still! It would be a shame to ruin the surprise with a broken neck."

"Yeah, yeah. Just pass me another string, brat."

Ryou carefully held up the end of another string of fairy lights. They'd already made it most of the way around the room. It was looking pretty good, actually, but they'd have to hurry before Marik got back. It had been hard enough to get him out of the house this time, they wouldn't get another chance.

Marik had been getting quieter and quieter as the 23rd approached, and more and more irritable about having the lights _just so_ in their room. He never liked the dark, but his protectiveness over the lamps in the room was getting a little out of hand. And that was when Ryou remembered the box of fairy lights they hadn't put up for Christmas yet.

"Hurry! He'll be back any minute!"

"Yeah yeah, I'm on it." Bakura put his nimble fingers to work to secure the last of the lights.

And just in time, too. The front door slammed open, and they could hear Marik kicking off his boots in the doorway. Ryou and Bakura shared a grin before hurrying to join him.

"Welcome back, Marik!" Ryou beamed, but Marik's mood didn't lift the way it normally would at the chipper greeting. He just gave a vague hum of acknowledgement as he hung up his coat.

Ryou squared his shoulders. Marik clearly needed all the help they could give him. "So, we have a surprise for you."

Marik sighed and turned to them. "Ryou, I'm really not in the mood for surprises."

Bakura gave Marik a no-nonsense look. "We're not asking for permission. You need this, so don't argue."

Ryou tone was gentler. "Please, Marik? Just come see. We really think you'll like it."

Marik still looked unsure, so Bakura took matters in to his own hands and wrapped an arm around Marik's waist. "Come on, taking a look won't hurt you. Promise." He reached up to press a reassuring kiss to Marik's cheek.

Marik sighed. "Alright, fine. Lead the way." He let Bakura guide him down the hall as Ryou led the way. He leaned into Bakura more heavily than he usually would, but Bakura just tightened his grip to support him.

The entered the bedroom, which was completely dark. Marik scowled and opened his mouth, but Ryou cut him off. "Give me two seconds!" He bent down to the outlet and plugged in the extension cord.

As soon as he did, the whole ceiling lit up with twinkling lights, filling the room with a soft glow. Marik's jaw dropped.

Ryou turned a beaming smile on him. "We know you're having extra trouble with dark places right now, and we thought it would help if you could sleep under the open stars. But it's too cold outside for that, so…"

Marik held a hand to his mouth. He looked back and forth between the two as they smiled gently at him, waiting for his reaction. When he spoke, his voice was choked. "You gave me the sky."

"Of course we did. You deserve that and more. You should never feel trapped again. Not while we can do something about it." Bakura gave him a squeeze around the waist and dutifully ignored the moisture gathering in the corners of Marik's eyes.

Ryou quickly joined them and wrapped his arms around Marik from the other side. "So it's OK? You like it?"

Marik just swooped in to give Ryou a firm kiss as Bakura gently wiped the tears from his cheek.


	17. Visionshipping - Secret santa

**Day 17: Visionshipping (Mai/Isis) - "Secret Santa"**

~ o ~ o ~ o ~

Isis walked back into her hotel room after the last of the day's meetings. She'd been eager to take on this assignment for the chance to see her brother in Domino, but was very glad the seemingly endless meetings were now over.

She sighed contentedly as she pulled off her shoes. As she settled heavily in her chair, she spotted a small wrapped gift on the side table. How curious.

She reached forward and ran her fingers along the shiny paper. Perhaps something from Marik? But surely, he would just wait to give her a gift in person. A gift from the hotel? That seemed unlikely.

Well, there really was only one way to find out, wasn't there? She carefully pulled the paper off the gift to find a small bottle of perfume nestled in the tissue paper. Tucked in behind it was a note that simply read " _Happy Holidays! 3 -M_ ", with a phone number. That was neither her brother's handwriting nor his number. How curious.

Still, she picked up her phone and dialled Marik's number. Maybe he would know what was going on. She smiled when her brother's face filled the screen.

"Hi, Isis." There was a muffled greeting from offscreen. "Ryou says hi, too. How'd the meetings go?"

"Quite well. I should have more time to visit in the next few days."

"Great!"

Isis smiled. "Actually, I have another reason to call. There was a mysterious gift in my room. Do you know anything about it?"

Marik's grin widened. "Oh yeah, I snuck that in. It's from Mai."

"Mai?"

Marik took pity on Isis' confused expression. "Yeah. She gave it to Ryou, who gave it to me, and I snuck it in to you."

"But…why?"

"I don't know, sister, you'd have to ask her." Isis could swear her brother's eyes twinkled, but for the life of her she couldn't figure out why. It was times like this she missed the insight of the Millenium Necklace.

"I suppose I'll have to, then. Thank you Marik."

Marik gave her a wide grin and wished her well as Ryou shouted his goodbyes in the background.

Isis stared back down at the perfume bottle. It really was quite lovely. At the very least, she should call and thank Mai for the unexpected gift. She dialled the number and soon she was looking at a slightly surprised-looking Mai.

"Oh! Hello." Mai's face settled into a warm smile. "I honestly wasn't expecting you to actually call. But I'm glad that you did! I guess Marik managed to deliver my little gift then?"

"He did. It was very kind of you to think of me. I don't often get unexpected gifts."

Mai laughed. "I find that hard to believe." She continued before Isis could ask what she meant. "I hope it wasn't too bold of me to send it. Some of the girls on the cruise ship would do secret santa gifts back in the day, and it seemed like a good excuse to get you something."

"I do appreciate the thought. The perfume is lovely." Mai looked delighted. Isis mostly felt awkward. What was one supposed to do in this situation? "I wished to thank you for the kindness."

Mai waved her off. "It's nothing."

"Even still, I'd like to return the favour." Isis racked her brain for an appropriate response. "Perhaps I can have you out for coffee while I'm in town, to thank you?"

Mai's eyed widened fractionally before a wide smile took over again. "That would be wonderful. When and where?"

They quickly arranged to meet at a small café the next day. Isis still felt as though she was missing some critical subtext in the conversation, but there was little to be done about it. "I shall see you tomorrow, then. It was lovely to talk to you again."

"Sure thing. I'm looking forward to it." Mai winked and blew a playful kiss at the screen. "See you later!" The phone went blank.

Isis was fairly sure she was blushing at her phone. How very unusual.

~ o ~ o ~ o ~

 _A/N: Sometimes, you just gotta get your sister a cute girl for Christmas. Poor Isis isn't going to know what hit her. ;)_


	18. Tendershipping - Help! My tongue!

**Day 18: Tendershipping (Ryou/Yami Bakura) - "Help! My tongue is stuck to this pole!"**

~ o ~ o ~ o ~

"You are so damn stupid sometimes it's painful."

Bakura managed some offended grumbling. That was all he _could_ manage, given his current predicament.

"How the hell did you ever get so close to world domination?"

"Mmmrr!" Bakura used a free hand to flip Ryou off.

"It's a good thing you're cute, you know that?"

"Mmmff!" Some hand flapping in the general direction of home.

"Ugh ok, I'll go try to find something warm enough to get you unstuck."

"Mm-mm-rr…"

"Did you seriously just waggle your eyebrows at me?"

"Mmmf!" Bakura might have been trying to look suave, but it was hard to tell when he had his tongue lolling out to the side, where it was cemented firmly to the metal pole Ryou _had warned him not to lick like the idiot he was_.

"You are _such_ an idiot."

Bakura just huffed.


	19. Prideshipping - By the fire

**Day 19: Prideshipping (Yami Yugi/Seto) - "Warming up by the fire"**

(Since "Prideshipping" seems to get used for both Yami and Atem, I went with Atem [even though there's apparently a separate ship name for that])

~ o ~ o ~ o ~

Atem had situated himself on the loveseat closest to the fire as soon as he got indoors. He doubted he'd ever be used to the snow and cold that came around every winter. Even the beauty of the ski lodge where he's convinced Kaiba to take some holidays didn't make the cold any easier to tolerate. He held out frozen fingers towards the fire. He'd need feeling back in them to hold his cards later. They hadn't discussed it, but it was a given that there would be duelling later.

Soon, Seto followed him indoors with an armful of fresh firewood. He dumped the logs near the fire to dry out for use later, and kneeled down to stoke the fire back up. Atem greatly appreciated his efforts and watched closely.

Seto brushed his hands off as he stood up and turned to Atem, eyeing how he had curled in to himself to conserve heat. "Are you really this pathetic in the cold?"

"Preferring to be comfortable is hardly pathetic."

"Sure." Despite the dismissive tone, Seto sat next to Atem and dragged the fuzzy blanket from the back of the couch over their shoulders. He shifted to accommodate Atem's smaller frame when he tucked himself firmly into Seto's warm side with a contented sigh. Seto curled an arm around his shoulders as he did so.

"I guess I have to accommodate your delicacy, if you're going to be at full power to duel later."

Atem barely resisted rolling his eyes. That excuse had worn out so long ago it was bordering on comical. "By all means, then, accommodate away." He shifted to rest his cheek on Seto's chest and reached an arm across his chest. After all, sharing body heat was the best way to warm up, was it not?


	20. Heartshipping - Sledding

**Day 20: Heartshipping (Yugi/Ryou) - "Sledding"**

~ o ~ o ~ o ~

"C'mon, Ryou, let's go together this time!"

"Yeah, we'll get some good distance that way." Ryou tucked himself in behind Yugi on their little toboggan and wrapped his arms around his waist. They'd been running up and down this hill all afternoon like children, and it was great. Ryou tucked his chin over Yugi's shoulder. "Ok, let's go!"

With a laugh, Yugi used his legs to nudge them towards the edge of the hill. After a breathless moment of slowly tipping forward, they whooped when the sled went careening down the hill and skittered along the snow.

"Oh no, watch out!"

The problem with sledding is there really isn't much you can do if, say, you notice that you've veered off course and are about to zoom right over a large hunk of ice. There's also not much you can do if the aforementioned hunk of nice causes your sled to tilt wildly to the side and spew its passengers out into the snow like some sort of Hollywood car chase gone wrong.

Good thing the rest of the snow was fluffy.

"Whoops, that didn't go according to plan." Yugi shook as much show out of his hair as possible before turning to Ryou with a wide grin. Ryou was still flat on his back in the snow. He wasn't moving. "Ryou?"

Yugi crawled over to Ryou and saw that his eyes were closed. "Ryou?" Yugi leaned down to check for breath and that's when he saw the tiniest of twitches in the corner of Ryou's mouth. Oh, so that's how it is, hmm? Yugi blew a puff of air in Ryou's face. His eyelids twitched, but otherwise he didn't react.

Yugi decided to skip right to the end of this little game, and scooped up a handful of snow. "I'd miraculously regain consciousness if I were you." No reaction. Fine.

Yugi dumped the handful of snow right in the middle of Ryou's face. _That_ got a reaction.

"Yugi! Why?!" Ryou burst out laughing and frantically wiped the snow from his face before it could sink into his scarf or hat.

"Because I love you?"

"Oh really." Ryou's grin shifted into a little smirk.

"Ryou, don't you dare." Yugi held up his hands to ward Ryou off and shuffled backward in the snow.

"But I love you too, and I simply _must_ show it!"

"No, Ryou, really it's ok, I – _ack!_ " Yugi laughed and flailed as he was tackled into the snow. The kisses were a little colder and wetter than he'd like, but he accepted them happily.

He could always shove show down the back of Ryou's shirt later, if it came to that.


	21. Trashshipping - Candy Canes

**Day 21: Trashshipping (Yami Bakura/Yami Marik) - "Candy Canes"**

(Yami Marik's name-of-the-day: Mariku! And also a minor CW for playful blood, because these two have issues.

There are no words for my sheer JOY when a pairing with YM got "candy canes", because of the brilliant post on Tumblr with him getting ready to stab odion with a candy cane rod.)

~ o ~ o ~ o ~

Bakura strolled into the living room and flopped on the couch. He turned his head to Mariku, who was busily curling his tongue around a candy cane.

Bakura smirked as he watched Mariku slurp at the treat. "Having fun?" Mariku just grunted. Bakura hadn't noticed at first, but he looked like he was concentrating carefully on his treat rather than just chomping it down as usual. Bakura tilted his head curiously. "What're you doing?"

Mariku grinned and slid the candy cane out with a loud slurp. He held it out for Bakura to examine. "Making weapons."

Bakura stared at the candy, which was vaguely cone-shaped. He shot Mariku a thoroughly unimpressed look. "I'm terrified."

Mariku rolled his eyes. "It's not finished, asshole." He stuck the candy back in his mouth and unwrapped a second one. " _This_ one is done."

Bakura let out a low whistle and took the treat, which had been carefully turned into a peppermint-flavoured spear. _Spearmint. Ha._ He poked a finger at the tip and was surprised at how sharp it really was.

Then he eyed the little pile of candy canes this 'weapon' had come from. "How many have you made, exactly?"

"Three."

"Oh good, then you can defend yourself properly. Think fast!" And with that, he jabbed the tip of the sharpened candy cane at Mariku's forearm. His eyes widened when it scratched deep enough to draw tiny droplets of blood. "Well fuck. Ryou might murder us if we get blood everywhere again."

For his part, Mariku blinked at the blood welling on his arm in a kind of detached fascination for a few seconds, before lifting his arm to his mouth and licking away the red with a wide grin. Quick as a flash, he snapped up one of his other weapons and jabbed it into the back of Bakura's hand.

"Maybe this will make you sweeter." Mariku curled his tongue around the treat as though to catch any blood from the blade. He hadn't actually managed to pierce the skin, but it was the thought that counted.

"Doubtful." Bakura's grin widened as he shifted his grip on his own sweet, preparing to attack. "But now, I need to get my revenge for you even trying."

Mariku matched his grin as he lunged for him, candy cane at the ready.

~ o ~ o ~ o ~

 _A/N:_ _yes, you can draw blood if you sharpen your candy cane well enough. It's not fun. Do not recommend, blood and peppermint aren't a good combo. Stay safe out there, kids! ;p_


	22. Kleptoshipping - Holiday Movies

**Day 22: Kleptoshipping (Yami Bakura/Yugi) - "Holiday Movies"**

~ o ~ o ~ o ~

"It has ghosts and British people in it, you'll like it."

"I think you're confusing me with my host."

Yugi pouted over the back of the couch. "Well, then think of it as nostalgia or something?" Bakura didn't budge, so he doubled down with wide puppy eyes. "Aw c'mon, we've gotta watch some sort of holiday movie, and tonight it's either Scrooge or some horrible romantic comedy."

"Why not just cut to the chase and watch holiday porn? That would be entertaining as fuck."

"That's for later." Yugi was still master of the sweet, innocent smile, even when it was a blatant front. Bakura rolled his eyes.

"If I need to sit around and watch some crappy old movie first, then I demand steak for dinner."

"Burgers are already on the way."

Bakura crossed his arms as though considering the offer, and Yugi kept up his best pleading eyes. He let out a little huff. "Fine, if we must." Yugi let out a little cheer as he shuffled around the couch, and beamed as he flopped down beside him.

"Great! Grab the blanket, would you?" Yugi fiddled with the remote while Bakura hauled the blanket off the back of the couch. Despite his initial grumbling, he tucked Yugi firmly into his side as soon as they were settled. Yugi snuggled quite happily into him. He couldn't even bring himself to be annoyed that he was so predictable. After all, it was a given that he was going to get some proper sappy cuddling out of the deal, and they both knew it.

Well, at least until they got to the holiday porn. And he'd be holding Yugi to _that_ , too.


	23. Puppyshipping - Christmas party

**Day 23: Puppyshipping (Seto/Joey) - "Christmas Party"**

 _A/N: Actually, I combined two prompts for this, Christmas party and Making dinner._

~ o ~ o ~ o ~

"I cannot believe you convinced me to go along with this."

"Eh, it comes with da package. You signed up for it fair an' square. Pass the salt."

Seto handed over the container without complaint. "If I'd known you would come with a holiday dinner with your nerd herd, I may have reconsidered."

"Well, too late now. You're just gonna hafta suck it up, rich boy." Joey shot him a wide, cheeky grin. "An' don't even pretend you're not lookin' forward to tryin' ta corner Yuge into a duel while you have the chance." He jabbed a wooden spoon at Seto's chest. "I'm wise to your ways."

"Hn, you got me. This has all been nothing but an overly elaborate scheme to steal his crown back once and for all."

"Knew it." Joey gestured for one of the spice jars, and Seto dutifully passed it over. "But you still gotta get through this dinner, first. Besides, we're tryin' to fill this dusty old place with better memories, right? This'll count, even if ya get all grinchy about it first. If nothin' else, it'll keep me an' Mokie happy, an' you'll like that."

Seto inclined his head in agreement. "Perhaps. I still don't see why we couldn't have it catered, though. This seems like far more work than it's worth, when the hosts have a chef on staff." Seto turned his attention back to a pan on the stove and gave its contents another stir. He may be out of practice, but he knew how to prevent things from burning, at least.

"'Cause this is fun. It's bonding, or memory makin', or whatever." Joey held up a spoonful of sauce for Seto to taste. He did, and handed Joey the oregano. A few sprinkles more, and Joey plunked the lid back on and left it to simmer. "There, that'll do. We're not so bad at this domestic gig, huh?"

"I suppose not." Seto leaned in to lay a kiss on Joey cheek. All this fuss would be worth it in the end.

~ o ~ o ~ o ~

 _A/N: I apologize for the very long wait on this. This site is so darned quiet I just totally forgot about it. I will post the last two chapters here immediately. Thanks for your patience. :)_


	24. Conspireshipping - Ugly Xmas sweaters

**Day 24: Conspireshipping (Ryou/Yami Bakura/Marik/Yami Marik) - "Ugly Christmas Sweaters"**

 _A/N: Like the last one, I combined two of the remaining prompts for this: Ugly sweaters and Exchanging gifts. What's the point of making your own rules if you can't break them? ;)_

 _Yami Marik name-of-the-day: Nasir!_

~ o ~ o ~ o ~

Ryou burst into the room. "I have presents!"

Excited shouts rang out, and Marik laughed as he spoke over the other two. "Yes, we can see that. How can you even see where you're going?" He lifted a couple of the boxes off Ryou's armful, revealing a bright smile behind them.

"I couldn't. But I figured there are enough people in here that someone would have caught me if I tripped."

"Damn right. Someone's gotta save the presents." Nasir grinned wickedly and swiped the remaining gifts out of Ryou's hands, but still pecked a kiss to his playful pout before hauling the gifts to the table. "What'd you get us?"

Ryou watched the others curiously poke at the wrapping paper. "Who says they're presents for you?"

"The fact that you know better than to tease us with gifts that aren't for us." Bakura wrapped an arm around Ryou's waist and gave him a quick squeeze in greeting. "What'd you get us?"

Ryou clapped in excitement. "You'll have to open them and see! Let's see…" He passed out a box to each of them, before setting the last one on his lap and staring at the others expectantly.

Marik looked up from tracing the designs on his wrapping paper as Ryou sat down. "Wait, did you get a gift for yourself? Have you no faith in us?"

"That's debateable." Ryou winked. "But yes, this one's for me. It had to be a matching set, you know."

Marik's next question was cut off by a loud cackle from Nasir, who had torn right into his gift with his usual enthusiasm while they spoke. Marik and Bakura got up to peer over his shoulders and see what had him in hysterics.

Marik raised an eyebrow and glanced up at Ryou. "…I have questions."

Nasir was already squeezing the sweater on over his hair. "This is _great._ Who the hell even makes shit like this?!" He held out the bottom of the sweater to stare down at the front, which featured the cartoonish mangled corpse of a pudgy old woman with tightly curled hair, dressed in a ruffled sleeping gown and surrounded by bloody hoofprints and sleigh tracks.

Bakura poked at the glittery blood pooled around the woman. "Ryou, you are seriously messed up. It's great."

Ryou beamed. "Thank you." He turned to Marik, who had gone from confused to shaking his head in fond exasperation as Bakura turned to tear into his own package. "It's designed after a Christmas song, actually. 'Grandma Got Run Over by a Reindeer'. It's a delightful little ditty."

Bakura victoriously held up his own sweater, which was absolutely decked out in a horribly clashing assortment of sequins, rhinestones, and glitter. "This thing is the ugliest pile of shiny crap I think I've ever seen."

Ryou laughed. "That's the point! I got you the one with the most bling I could find so you can flaunt your treasure like a proper King of Thieves."

There was a short scuffle as Bakura wrestled the shirt over his head, and Marik laughed at the sight. "He looks like a lopsided disco ball."

Bakura scoffed and ran his hands over his glittery chest with a wide smirk. "Fuck off. This is now my most precious treasure."

Nasir snuck up behind him and slid arms around his glittery waist. "Aw, but aren't we…?"

Bakura but him off. "Shut your damn face, you're not getting any of that stupid sappy crap from me this time, don't even bother." Despite his words, Bakura settled comfortably back onto Nasir's chest and gave one of the arms around his waist a squeeze as he spoke. "C'mon, Marik, open yours, I want to see what kind of monstrosity you've got."

"Yeah, yeah." Marik turned to his own gift and lifted it out of the box to gales of laughter from the other two. Marik turned to Ryou with a sardonic expression. "A little short, isn't it?"

Ryou couldn't hold back his laughter anymore. "It's Battle City sized! We miss the easy access to your abs!"

"Flattering, but…" The group's laughter got louder as Marik put his arm through the extra cutout at the front of the sparkly bundle of fuzz in his arms. "Is this really necessary?"

" _Yes._ " Bakura and Nasir grinned and high-fived themselves, and Marik rolled his eyes so hard they looked about ready to disappear into his head permanently.

Nasir grinned wolfishly. "C'mon, put it on."

"Yeah, we'll make sure to keep you warm if you need it."

Marik adopted a haughty air and held out the garment between two fingers. He sniffed. "I don't know, it's not my colour."

He felt something latch onto his arm and turned to a laughing Ryou. "But it's Christmas colours! It's festive! Here, I'll put mine on, too."

The fact that he had wrapped his own gift didn't go unnoticed or unteased, but Ryou just insisted that it was important to do these things properly. He gleefully ripped the paper to bits and pulled his sweater over his head.

Nasir smiled at the picture. "Hey, it's that movie you like!"

Ryou beamed. "Yep. Nightmare Before Christmas never gets old." It was a horribly gaudy version of the print, really, all the better to match his boyfriends.

The campaign to get Marik out of his shirt wasn't going so well, so Ryou sauntered over to help by distracting Marik with kisses. In short order, Nasir was bolting away with Marik's shirt in hand, leaving a smirking Bakura to hold out the new sweater to replace it. Marik finally capitulated with a laugh and got himself dressed.

"This is actually really soft."

"Of course. I wouldn't get you something scratchy."

Nasir piled into them and pulled them both into one-armed hugs. "Gotta test out the softness, now. Let's see…." He nuzzled into Marik's shoulder. "Not bad. C'mon, I need a second opinion, get in here."

It didn't take long for the group to fall into a sort of lopsided group cuddle, as they poked and prodded at their new outfits and played 'who can steal the most kisses'. Ryou won. Again. Bakura complained. Again. Eventually they settled themselves on the couch, and Ryou victoriously took a selfie of the group in their new bling.

The picture on their Christmas card was particularly interesting that year, and Ryou wouldn't have it any other way.

~ o ~ o ~ o ~

 _A/N: Does anyone consider 1k a "drabble"? ...whatever, consider it a bonus! ;)_

 _That's it! I hope you enjoyed this madness, and found at least a few pairings that suited you. I enjoyed writing these, and may do another collection at some point._

 _If you'd like to suggest a pairing and prompt (of any kind, not just winter themes), I'd welcome it! :D Either leave a comment here, or send me an ask on Tumblr, and I'll do my best to rise to the challenge!_


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